Google Play May Add Audiobooks

Signs of audiobook expansion were first spotted by Google watchers at the Google Operating System website. It discovered an empty page in the help section of Google Play -- a consolidation of the company's apps, music, movie and ebook stores -- labeled "Audio books."

In addition, among the genres listed in the stores ebook section are two references to audio books.

The Google watchers also observed that the company has been registering a number of Google Play domains that suggest further expansion of the store's content into magazines, newspapers and TV shows.

Adding those content types to the store will bring it more in line with the offerings found in Apple's iTune store.

If audiobooks are added to Google Play, it remains to be seen where the books would be available. For example, the total store repertorire -- music, movies, apps and ebooks -- are only available in the United States. In Canada and the United Kingdom, Google Play offers only movies, books and apps; in Australia, books and apps; in Japan, movies and apps; and everywhere else, just apps.